Tau Upsilon Gamma [M+/M+] [update - 3/15/24] NEW POLL

[KidnappedCowboy]

First [mention]gag1195[/mention] with "All Inclusive Fitness" and now you [mention]wataru14[/mention] with this latest chapter...

I go to the gym to let off steam, but now all I can do is imagine some of the hunky guys there bound to benches, equipment, machines, and treadmills!!!

[wataru14]

Sorry for my prolonged absence. I bought a condo and the last two weeks has been eaten up by mortgage stuff and moving. But I'm all moved in and most of my stuff is unpacked, so I can get back to writing. The next chapter should be up in a few days.

[Shadesflirty]

Sorry for my prolonged absence. I bought a condo and the last two weeks has been eaten up by mortgage stuff and moving. But I'm all moved in and most of my stuff is unpacked, so I can get back to writing. The next chapter should be up in a few days.

Wow! A property owner AND an author of fantastically sexy content. You really do have it all!

Congrats on your purchase and looking forward to the next chapters in these men’s lives. X

[TiedupNick]

Congrats on homeownership!

[wataru14]

After a long absence, here is the next chapter. I've been tied up (and not in a good way) with mortgage closings and moving into my new condo. But I'm all settled in now and ready to get back to work!


Brotherly Bonding part 5: The Cleanup

Sunday was rough for Ray. His Saturday had gone pretty well, but things quickly went to shit as soon as he got home. When he woke up from the party Saturday morning, everyone was gone except for him. Apparently Leo had left at the ass crack of dawn and Nate and Cody skipped out a little while later. He had to ask around about Mason, but no one seemed to know where he was. But Danny was also MIA, so Ray assumed they were together. He also heard about the unpleasantness with DIX across the street and was pretty disappointed that he wasn’t awake when it happened. He was in the mood to crush some skulls and those smarmy bastards were target numero uno. Some of the upperclassmen warned him to be on guard after the Rush Week protection wore off, but Ray wasn’t worried. He was a fighter, after all. “Let ‘em try to fuck with me.”

As he took some time to explore the house with a clear head, Ray stumbled on Shane out on the back porch doing yoga. The yard was trashed beyond belief. Overturned garbage, mountains of cans and bottles, broken glass from a shattered upstairs window, the works. But Shane looked serene, even amid all the debris. Ray brushed off a lounge chair and relaxed a little while Shane “ohm shanti’ed” for a while. Ray had to suppress laughter a few times at the insane positions his Big Bro was contorting himself into. When Shane finally sat up straight and wiped his brow with a towel, he made the announcement that he and Ray would be going to campus that afternoon. Apparently the senior film class was going to be casting for their final term projects and Shane said both he and Ray were going to go. He would take no argument.

Ray protested, saying he had never done anything like that before, but Shane snapped and printed a quick headshot for him and off they went. The event itself was a cattle call. Dozens of people being handed script pages and being asked to read them in front of a camera setup. Most of the scripts were trash, Ray thought, but some of the stuff he read was decent. He figured Shane would be mad if he half-assed it, so Ray made sure to put in legit effort during his readings. He thought he did pretty well, especially since he didn’t want to be there in the first place, and when it was done Shane dropped him off back at the dorm so he could wait for any possible callbacks. It was early evening when he got back and Mason was already there and doing homework. At least Ray thought it was Mason. He was hunched over his computer in one of his usual nerd t-shirts and pajama pants, but his face was all fucked up and his head had been shaved. Ray ran over like a flash.

“What the hell happened to you?” he asked, leaning over and inspecting Mason’s bruises. “You look like you got the crap beat out of you. Did DIX do this? If they laid a hand on you I’ll…”

“No,” Mason interrupted. “It wasn’t DIX, it was Danny. The bruises were completely accidental but the hair was intentional.”

“Fucking asshole,” Ray fumed. “You look like you went five rounds with Tyson. What the hell was Danny thinking?”

“It’s OK,” Mason said. “I actually kinda like it. Do you think it makes me look tough?”

“I think it makes you look stupid,” Ray said. “You gonna join a punk band next? Come on, man, this isn’t you.”

Mason stood up furiously from the chair. “Maybe it is,” he said. “Maybe I don’t know who I am and I want to try new things out. You’re not my dad. If you’re not going to be supportive, then at least have the decency to shut the fuck up.”

Ray was floored. Mason had never stood up to him, or anyone else, like that. He quickly apologized, unsure of what was going on, and Mason seemed to calm down a bit. But there was something else bothering him, that was clear. They’d been friends for so long they could read each other’s moods flawlessly. “What’s really going on?” Ray asked.

Mason slumped back in the chair. “Danny told me I had to get a phone number on the way home from the gym,” he said glumly. “I ran into some girls from the party and tried to be smooth, but they just kept laughing at me. They took one look at my face and hair and thought it was some kind of frat prank. Which it kinda was, I guess. But they shot me down. That’s nothing new for me, but I was feeling so good up to then. I was on a real high, you know? Thinking that I might be making progress. But then everything came crashing down. Just like always.” There was a heavy pause. “I managed to run into a guy from my Physics 101 class and got his number so we can arrange a study group, so Danny won’t be on my ass about that, but… but it hurts, man.”

Ray put his arm around Mason. “I know,” he said tenderly. “But you gotta ease into these things. The timing wasn’t right. But it will be. I didn’t know this was so important to you. You want me to wingman for you? Say no more.”

“I want to do this myself,” Mason said. “Thanks, man. But I’ll be OK.” He returned to his chair and said nothing the rest of the night.

Mason continued his depressive funk all through the next day. He was so sore he could barely move. Ray tried everything he could to cheer Mason up on Sunday, but nothing worked. He ordered pizza, torrented a WWE pay-per-view for them to watch on TV, offered to let Mason kick his ass in Halo… nothing. The only thing that made Mason speak was a low “congratulations,” when Ray got a call from one of the film directors around mid-afternoon. The guy doing a war film wanted Ray for a supporting role in his project. Ray wasn’t enthused, but was glad that it was an action film, at least, and not a stuffy drama or rom com. At least he’d have some fun. Nate called that evening, wanting to talk to Mason about an idea for an activity with the Seniors this coming weekend, but by that time Mason had already gone to bed.

Monday morning, Ray woke up to find Mason already gone. He was distracted with worry all through classes. Mason had lab in the afternoon, so he wouldn’t be back in the room until after dinner. And then they had to get ready to go to the TUG house for their cleanup project. Since there was nothing he could do about Mason right now, Ray decided to head to dinner. In the dining hall, he saw Cody and Leo eating together, so he decided to join them.

“What up?” he said as he plopped down with his tray. His fellow pledges greeted him enthusiastically. They were both almost done, but said they would sit with Ray until he was finished eating. “Have either of you seen Mason today?” Ray asked.

“You mean vanilla Mr. T?” Leo joked, biting down on an apple. “I saw him and Nate around the science quad this afternoon. Love the ‘do. Had one just like it Sophomore year of high school.”

Ray frowned. “Did he seem OK?” he asked. “He barely spoke all weekend. Some girls shot him down Saturday afternoon and he took it pretty hard. Moped and sulked for two days. I think this change thing he’s trying isn’t healthy for him. I hate seeing him like this.”

“Existential angst will do that to a man,” Leo said. “But if it’s any consolation, he’s fine. He was getting some grief from the Great Unwashed here and there, but he handled it epically. Some poor schmuck decided to push M-Dawg’s buttons extra hard, however, and soon learned to regret his decision. The verbal asskicking Mason gave him in response was worthy of Oscar Wilde. Lay down some beats and you’d have one hell of a rap battle. Poor chump slinked off with his tail between his legs.”

Ray seemed pleased by that. If Mason was learning to stand up for himself, then maybe this “transformation” wasn’t a completely bad thing. Maybe.

“And the Grinch’s balls grew three sizes that day,” Leo joked.

“But that’s not all that happened this weekend, is it?” Cody said. “You got a part in a movie, didn’t ya?”

Ray was shocked. “How did you know?” he asked.

“A guy in my Geography 101 class is a theater major and we were talking during break,” Cody said. “He got a part in the same movie and showed me the email with the cast list. I saw your name. That’s cool, man!”

Ray grumbled, picking at his macaroni and cheese. “I only auditioned because Shane made me,” he said, a little embarrassed but also happy to be the center of attention again. “But it might be fun. I don’t know anything about it other than that it’s a war movie. The readthrough is tomorrow afternoon.”

“Well, that sounds way more fun than my weekend,” Leo said. “I can’t give any details, but let us just say that I spent most of Sunday in a very uncomfortable position doing recon on some incredible unpleasant lesser primates. Troglodytes who seem to be sitting two tables away and are watching us with a great deal of interest.”

Cody shot a surreptitious glance in the direction Leo indicated, but Ray turned full out. Clay, Travis, and two other DIX meatheads weren’t even attempting to hide the fact that they were spying on the group. They were too far away to hear the Freshmen’s conversation amid the dining hall clamor, but they could clearly see everything. “They’ve been following all of us all weekend,” Leo said. “After what the faculty advisor said to them on Saturday, they won’t dare make a move this week, but once Sunday hits, it would be best if we travel in groups. If you catch my meaning.”

Ray started fuming. The three of them would be fine, but Nate and Mason were always together during class time and would be a prime target for DIX harassment… or worse. He started to turn in their direction and stand up, but Cody grabbed his arm and forced him back down into his seat. “No,” he said. “Don’t. I know what you’re thinking. I thought the same thing. But if you go over there and start something you’ll be drawing a target on their backs. The best thing for us to do would be to draw their attention away from Nate and Mason. Make them focus on us.”

“Exactly,” Leo said. “And now is not the time. I have some ideas in that regard but they will have to wait until another moment. We have an appointment coming up and it would be most unwise to be late.”

“Nate just texted me,” Cody said, fiddling with his phone. “He and Mason will meet us there. But we’d better go.”

Ray agreed and the three stood up together and headed out. But as they walked, Ray locked eyes with Travis. Without saying a word, he made it very clear that any attempt to fuck with Mason would draw a quick and brutal response. When Travis flinched, Ray knew he was understood.

---

The group arrived as one at the House promptly at 6:00. All five were dressed in their pledge uniforms, as instructed, and gathered together on the porch. They figured it would be best to enter as a group. Brett seemed very interested in togetherness and the pledges figured it would be an appreciated gesture. “Front yard looks pretty clean,” Cody said, slightly puzzled. “I know most of the action was in the back, but doesn’t anyone else remember there being some garbage out here?”

“It’s hard to say,” Nate said. “Most of Friday is still a blur and Saturday morning I wasn’t paying too much attention to the yard with the goon squad across the street. But if we’re on cleaning detail, we should probably be grateful that at least something isn’t going to require too much work. There’ll be more than enough trash out back for everyone.”

“True that,” Cody said, opening the front door. The foyer was dark and there didn’t seem to be any lights on in the house interior, either. Cody tried to switch on the lights, but nothing happened. He continued to fiddle with the switch as the other four filed in behind him. “Looks like a fuse got blown,” he said. “Box is probably in the garage. I’ll check it out in a second. For now let’s just go in and survey the damage.”

“Where is everyone?” Mason said, cautiously moving through the foyer to the living room in the darkness. He couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched.

“That’s a good question,” Leo said. “With 15 residents, the odds of NO ONE being home on a Monday night are pretty slim. Especially when we were ordered to come here. Something’s going on.”

“You worry too much,” Ray said. “They’re probably at dinner. Or this is another test. They probably want us to get started without them. Not let working in the dark scare us away from our jobs. They told us to clean up, so fucking around is probably a very bad idea.” Ray kicked an empty beer can on the floor for emphasis.

“Good point,” Cody said. “You guys get started as best you can in the dark. I’ll go try to get the power back on.” The other four groaned at the idea of mucking around blind, but Ray was probably right and they shouldn’t waste any more time gabbing. “I’ll be back in a jiffy,” Cody said as he stepped out onto the porch and closed the door behind him.

As he walked around the side of the house, he took another look at the yard. Someone had definitely cleaned up out here. The signs were gone, as was the overstuffed trash bin. The ashtrays had been emptied and the TP was gone from the trees. “They probably couldn’t leave the front looking like a demolition site,” Cody thought. “Have to keep appearances up so they won’t get in trouble with the university.” Confident with his assessment, Cody moved over to the garage and tried lifting the sliding door. But it didn’t budge.

“Must be locked,” he thought. “I’ll have to go in the side door.” Cody made his way through the gate and over to the single door in the side yard that led to the back of the garage. Where Hoss’ workstation was. The position of the door on the east side of the house kept any ambient light from the setting sun from penetrating the darkened interior. It was just as pitch-black inside as the rest of the house. “Gonna have to feel my way around, I guess,” Cody said aloud to no one. “Fuse box should be on the wall on the far side. Let’s get this overwith.”

Inside the garage, two pairs of eyes saw Cody entering the darkened room. It was easy with their nightvision goggles. Everything was a pale shade of green, but clear as day. From their hiding place behind the workbench the two hidden figures watched the unaware pledge blindly stumble through the room. Once or twice he faced directly at them, but shrouded in darkness as they were, they evaded the young cowboy’s notice. When Cody stubbed his toe on the leg of the workbench, unseen in the darkness, they took their shot and leapt from their cover.

Cody was totally blindsided as a leather-gloved hand clamped tightly over his mouth from behind and incredibly strong arms pulled him backwards. The young buck screamed in vain through the tight seal over his lips and grabbed for the arm holding him with both hands, but the swiftness of the attack and the disorientation of being grabbed in total darkness hindered his efforts. As he impotently failed and shouted, another pair of arms got him around the legs and lifted him off his feet. Before he could react, Cody felt himself being wrestled to the cold concrete floor face-first. He could hold his own in a fight easily, but with two against one and being jumped under cover of darkness, Cody realized he was powerless to fight back.

“You got his hands?” Cody heard one of his attackers say. He knew the voice, but with all the adrenaline surging through him he couldn’t think straight enough to place it. He felt the second attacker drop down to his knees behind him, pinning Cody’s legs to the floor with his body weight. Cody flailed his arms this way and that, trying to swat his assailants away and to get enough leverage to force himself up at the same time. He had to try and keep his arms from getting snatched by the second assailant. It was his only chance. He realized his chance of success was nearly nil, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to make it easy for them.

“Not yet,” the second attacker said, his voice also somehow familiar to Cody. “He’s a slippery one!” Cody deftly avoided his attacker’s swipes, pulling his arms away at the last moment. The first assailant, the one with his hand clamped over Cody’s mouth, soon grew tired of the game and leaned back, pulling Cody’s upper torso off the floor and bending his back. Almost like a camel clutch in WWE. Twisted and contorted as he now was, Cody was unable to continue thrashing his arms and it was an easy task for the second attacker to scoop them up and wrench them into the small of his back. Before he could blink, Cody felt his crossed wrists being pulled through an already-prepared loop of rope, which was then cinched impossibly tightly around them. That’s when he realized further struggling was useless and he gave up. “Got him!” Cody heard from behind.

With his legs pinned under the second captor’s body, Cody could barely move as he felt the rope being woven this way and that around his trapped wrists. It was threaded through itself several times, over and under, around and though, securing his wrists in an inescapable prison of rope. Tight, but not painfully so. And hopelessly snug. No slack or give. Whoever was binding him was a complete expert. One the knot was secured, well away from the reach of prying fingers, he felt the strain on his back being relieved as he was lowered back to the floor. But the respite was all too brief. Almost immediately, more rope was looped around his knees, pulling them tightly together before imprisoning them. His ankles followed, in turn.

Even though he was quite effectively immobilized, his unseen captors weren’t satisfied. He felt the hand over his mouth loosen somewhat, but before he could muster a cry for help, Cody felt some kind of coarse fabric being stuffed in his jaws. His cheeks bulged as leather-clad fingers stuffed every available inch of the rough cloth inside his mouth. His grunts and shouts were muffled into barely audible mmppgghhhs. Cody felt the fabric sucking up all the moisture in his mouth, but before he went dry he felt the stuffing with his tongue and realized his gag was a balled-up pair of gym socks. The sour salty taste made it obvious they were overdue for a washing. His eyes began to slightly water from the rank odor of workout sweat filling his nostrils from the inside. Taking advantage of Cody’s dazed state, the first unseen captor slapped the edge of a piece of gorilla tape over Cody’s lips and encircled his head six times with it. Cody’s mouth was now hopelessly sealed with no chance of escape.

While Cody was being stuffed and gagged, the other assailant wasted no time. He began to weave an intricate harness of rope around Cody’s torso, pinning his arms to his sides and securing them agonizingly tightly. Rope went around his pecs and shoulders, through his armpits and under, and then back in on itself. He could feel the tightness growing with each pass around. His thin white t-shirt offered little insulation against the secure roping and Cody could feel the fibers cutting into his skin. When his chest and shoulders were completely immobilized in a masterwork net of ropes, his captors finally released him and pulled back.

Cody looked like a sausage about to be stuffed in the oven. Secured and gagged mercilessly, Cody could do nothing but vainly wriggle and roll, grunting helplessly as his captors stood up. They had him right where they wanted him and he wasn’t going to get out of this without help.

“Damn!” the first captor said in the darkness. “I didn’t expect to be sweating so fast. Buckaroo here put up one hell of a fight!”

“Did you expect any less?” the second one said from somewhere behind Cody. “It was lucky this one decided to go out on his own first. Get the hardest one out of the way first.”

“Don’t get too confident,” the first attacker said. “Your boy isn’t going to go down easy either. It’ll probably take more than two to get him packaged up.”

“Very true,” came the response. “But we’ll worry about that when it happens.” Just then, Cody was blasted full in the face with the beam of a maglight flashlight. Cody recoiled from the blinding assault on his eyes, but when he opened them again, he saw his two attackers were kneeling down in front of him.



They were dressed in full military commando gear: combat boots, black cargo pants, hoodies, leather gloves, and balaclava facemasks. But even though the masks, Cody was able to identify the faces of Danny and Shane. He grunted and squirmed mightily, which did nothing but draw a few amused chuckles from his captors.

“As you probably figured out,” Shane said. “The clean-up was a ploy. We all took care of that yesterday. Well, most of it. We had to leave some mess to keep up the ruse. The real reason we called you here is for our first pledge activity: Freshman Roundup! The goal is simple. We have to isolate and capture each one of you. You messed up big time by going off by yourself right away. But we knew one of you would. Freshmen can be so predictable sometimes.” Shane gave Cody a condescending pat on the back.

“Better turn the lights on and then get this one into the safe room,” Danny said, heading over to the fusebox.

“No wait,” Shane said. “Leave that off. It might draw more of them out. Give the others a chance to nab them.”

“I like the way you think,” Danny smirked. “Very devious. And here I thought you were just another pretty face.”

“I’m just full of surprises,” Shane smirked. He reached down and grabbed the wildly struggling Cody by the legs. “Grab his arms and we’ll get him stashed.” Danny took hold of Cody’s arms and the two Seniors heave-ho’ed him up off the ground. The ropes binding Cody were so tight his arms and legs burned with every movement. He could barely move other than futile wriggling, but the ropes were so tight, even that sent fire through his body. He realized that it was better to lay back and bide his time. Letting what was going to happen happen. For now.

Danny and Shane hefted Cody out the door and over to the basement stairs that led to the backyard. Danny gave a signal knock and the door slowly and silently opened. The soundproofed ritual room was full with the Sophomore and Junior classes, who were lounging on couches, drinking, and playing video games on a TV that they had brought down. As Cody was carried down the stairs he was greeted by groans and disappointed shouts. And one very excited cheer. Cody saw a wooden chair being dragged over to an empty space in the middle of the room, in front of the couch and felt himself being gently lowered into it. He was turned to face the TV as two or three Sophomores began tightly lashing him to the chair with more ropes.

“One down, four to go,” Brandon said, putting his controller down and grabbing a beer. “And would you look at that! it’s Cody! Everyone’s favorite to make it to the end. But what’s this? He got nabbed first? Wow! If someone had bet on that they’d be really happy right about now. Haha you fuckers! I was right! How many points to I get?”

Bryan looked over at the dry erase board on the wall. Takeshi had updated it with the time of Cody’s capture. “Well, anyone who picked Cody for first blood gets 5 points. Since Brandon was the only one to score, he gets 10 bonus points. As well as 5 additional bonus points for guessing within 5 minutes of the capture time. A bold choice that paid off, my man!” Takeshi updated the scores. Cody seethed with humiliation as Brandon brought his feet up and rested them on his tied lap like he was some kind of ottoman.

“Brandon is in the lead with 20,” Takeshi said. “Omar, Pablo, and I each got 5 for being within 5 minutes of the time. Everyone else has zip nada zilch. But there’s four more targets to acquire so it’s still anyone’s game!”

“Round Two is about to begin,” Bryan said as Danny and Shane stealthily crept up the basement stairs into the yard, ready to join the other seniors for the next assault. “Who will be next? Gentlemen, place your bets!”

Coming Soon: Pledge Roundup - part 1

[Volobond]

Cody, yet again the first to be captured - I'm not at all surprised, and I'm not at all disappointed. I'm loving how everybody knows to tightly tie the cowboy first! Not to mention I'm having a lovely time imagining Cody all tied up and Shane and Danny looking mighty fly indeed in their kidnapper gear. Considering how DIX has already noticed that Cody will be on his own when he goes to work at Wade's leather shop, I wonder if he will continue this pattern.

Ray has got the most to learn, I'd say, even more than Mason - his lack of support for his buddy, or rather, his attempt to hold on to HIS idea of his buddy, is something he'll need to learn to shake. Not to mention it's rough to see DIX lining up to get their revenge. Speaking of Mason, I'm sorry he's so glum, but perhaps in honor of what Leo said, a quote from Oscar Wilde: "To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance."

Also, with my birthday only hours away, I've realized that as a college senior, I'm probably around the same age as Shane and Danny and the gang, and ain't that a kick in the head!

[DeeperThanRed]

I didn't expect this twist at all but it should've been obvious in hindsight!

Cody's capture was delightful to read but my favorite part in this chapter was how openly communicative and supportive Ray and Mason were, even if they had troubles along the way. The rest of the frat using pledges as bet pieces is fun but maybe they can have a chance if they stand together.

Great to see your writing as always.

[TiedupNick]

Hot damn! Love this update, as always!

I can only wish once again that I would have went to this college, as my college experience was quite a bit lacking in this regard!

[Wedgieboy69]

another great chapter. the smart plan would say Ray is next, to take down the other hardest one, but I doubt he will stray far from mason, and nate will cling to Mason without Cody.

Leo would be the one to stray off on his own (probably to snoop, and let his curiosity get the better of him, no doubt). that would make him the most likely easy pray in my mind.

[Bradstick]

Congrats on the house! I hope you got everything all settled okay, buying a house can be a nightmare.

This chapter was definitely worth the wait. I loved the reaction by Ray towards Mason of him being protective over him still and learning to ease off a little. And more Mason getting regretted after he was felt so good. Poor guy.

And the whole roundup is gonna be fun. It makes sense that Cody got captured first though. Definitely a problem solver and that led him right into their hands. And good job Brandon getting those 20 points. I wonder what the prize is for getting the most points. Hopefully it involves one of the pledges serving them for a night or something like that. Can’t wait to see who gets taken next! Personally I think it will be Mason/Ray.

[Guardianbound]

I loved reading this new chapter. Poor Cody, he doesn't seem to last long in these events. Excited to see whether the ploy to leave the lights off to draw more of them out will work or not. If the rest continue to stick together, it won't be so easy for the seniors to capture them. But still, looking forward to see how all the pledges eventually fall victim to their seniors.

[gag1195]

Poor Mason, but I had a feeling his confident approach of those girls wouldn't work out the way he wanted. I'm glad he found a friend/classmate to meet Danny's task, but man, what a blow to the ego. Can't blame Ray for being concerned. I'm happy Mason is growing, but I'm worried that he and Ray are drifting apart.

I also had a feeling that the cleanup was a ruse. There's no way the upperclassmen could survive all weekend living in the filth of a huge frat party (even frat bros and college boys). And, as others said, also poor Cody. It's a bit funny that he keeps getting taken out first in these events. hopefully he gets a chance to enjoy future events later in the year!

I'm really interested to hear more about Leo's weekend!

Congrats on the house and welcome back!

[Jason07]

Well damn, I suppose we should've expected something like this from a frat with the acronym "TUG" but honestly I still expected cleanup duties from a college frat fro pledges, though admittedly I know nothing about frats or how pledges are treated as I didn't go to a traditional college, and I had to drop out due to. . . . . Issues. But still, damn, wish I could have had something like this at that time.

[KidnappedCowboy]

[mention]wataru14[/mention]...you had be wondering whether Clay and Travis from DIX had begun to exact their revenge, but I should've known better!

Cody was born to be rustled!

[wataru14]

Well, after a prolonged absence, I am finally back! I moved about a month ago and the last few weeks have been full of the wonders of new homeownership. Utilities, HOA, blah blah blah. I was also quite ill all last week, but everything is OK now.

So, after too long a hiatus, here is the next chapter!


Brotherly Bonding Part 6: Pledge Roundup part 1

I should have seen it coming. I mean, I figured out their little scheme pretty quickly, even if the others were still clueless. That actually sort of surprised me a little. Ray is pretty thick, so him not noticing something was amiss isn’t weird. And Mason is book-smart but not very observant about things like this. The fact that Nate hadn’t caught on was what puzzled me. He was normally pretty good at picking up on things out of place. Not that it mattered now. I was pretty much out of the game at this point.

At the current moment I am sitting in a rather uncomfortable wooden chair. It’s sturdy mid-20th-Century craftsmanship, but it creaks and moans every time I shift my weight. I guess they keep these old antiques around for the effect. My hands are bound with clothesline behind the back of the chair and more rope is laced through the slats, holding my arms in tightly place. Rope encircles my chest and is woven in and out through the slats also. Since my jacket wasn’t part of the “pledge uniform,” I’m not wearing it, so I have no protection against the tightness of the bonds. And man do they constrict! Snug and taught, but not painful. I’m not going anywhere. Normally I might find a little bit of enjoyment in a situation like this, but the shame of slipping up like I did takes all the fun out of it. Especially since I was caught by HIM!

Apparently my wiliness is pretty well-known, so he took no chances with the totality of my restraints. My hands had been stuffed into leather mitts as soon as my wrists were secured upon my capture, robbing me of the use of my fingers. I would have been subtly trying to untie myself for quite a while now, but I guess they were prepared for that. Maybe these dudes were smarter than I had originally thought. Ropes held my waist to the chair and my legs are spread apart, tethered to each chair leg in two places: knees and ankles. I don’t have enough leverage to even slide the chair around. Not that I’d get very far. There are 10 dudes in the room and I am smack dab in the middle of the throng. Eyes on me from every direction. My mouth had been stuffed by a sweat-stained bandana (whose owner should see a doctor to have their rank odor problem looked into) and held in place with another in a tight knotted cleave. I had tried grunting and squawking a while ago, but all that got me was a crushed beer can bouncing off my head. Subsequent attempts to talk brought on a rather effective pink belly. I’m a man who can take a hint. Mum’s the word, I guess.

Seated next to me in the “place of honor” in the center of the room is Cody. He is trussed similarly (minus the mitts and with a slight variation in the gag department), right where I thought he would be. But it’s not like I could share that information with the others, blissfully unaware upstairs in the house. Being right didn’t feel too good right about now. What also didn’t feel too good was Jean-Marc reaching over from the couch every now and then and giving my nipples a good twist. The rope around my chest left them both windowed for easy access. Probably by design. But I didn’t blame him for taking the opportunity to torture me a little. I did him a dirty the other day and he should be allowed to get his revenge. Even in this small way.

Hanging on the wall to my left is a huge dry erase board with odds and stats and times and all sorts of figures. Looks like someone in this crew has ambitions of being a Vegas bookie. I figured out we were being stalked, but what I didn’t realize was that we are being stalked for points. Cody and I were both favorites to make it to the end and the fact that we were taken out first and second dropped some Brothers out of the running for the big prize completely. And they were none too happy about that. There are more than a few unhappy grumbles about how Cowboy Joe and I cost people big. Now is that fair? It’s not like it’s my fault! Sheesh. Brandon, the football jock, was well in the lead, having guessed both of us in the right order and almost pinpoint accuracy on the time. Dude must be lucky as fuck. Or have some kind of inside info. Either way, after Pledge Week is over I need to take him to Atlantic City.

So that’s where I am. Right now my legs are cramping and I have a kink in my back, but the ropes make it impossible to shift my weight too much and the gag prevents me from asking someone for relief. But, as much as I hate to say it, there’s nothing I can do about that right now. At least the football game is on and the bong is being passed around close enough to us for me to get a mini-contact out of the deal. Bryan is monitoring the Seniors’ movements on the walkie-talkies and everyone else is just chilling. Mostly ignoring Cody and me. Normally this would be a perfect time to formulate an escape plan, but Cody is too fixated on TV football to notice my attempts to attract his attention. Not that we could verbalize any kind of plan with our mouthed stuffed and gagged. So it looks like we’re going to be here a while.

---

Let’s rewind a bit. So you can see how I got into this mess in the first place. After Cody left the foyer, the four of us got to work on the living room. I noticed right away that the garbage load was much lighter than I remembered from Saturday morning. Nate seemed to have an odd feeling about this as well, but the other two didn’t seem to think anything was amiss. After a bit we realized Cody had been gone for a while. Too long a while.

“What’s taking so long?” Nate whined. He and I were using our phones to cast a small bit of light in the room so that Mason and Ray could collect the garbage, but it was still slow going. “It’s been fifteen minutes. He HAS to have found the fuse box by now. And if it didn’t work he should have come back inside to let us know.”

“Maybe he’s hiding outside to get out of work detail?” Mason suggested.

“If you think that, even for a second, you’ve clearly never spoken to Cody for more than 30 seconds,” I chuckled. “Dude was raised on a ranch. No way he’s going to shy away from work.”

“That’s right,” Ray said. “And he’s not the type to slack off and let someone else pull his share.”

“Lawful Good is as Lawful Good does,” Nate joked. But then a thought hit him. “Maybe he’s hurt!” Nate said, nearly dropping his phone. “Maybe he fell in the dark and hit his head and he’s bleeding out on the garage floor and there’s no one out there to find him and…” His stream-of-consciousness rambling was cut short when I tapped him on the shoulder.

“Settle down, dude,” I said. “I’m sure he’s OK. But if you’re that worried, I’ll go look for him.” Now I knew Cody was in a bad spot and needed assistance, but there was no sense in saying that out loud until I confirmed my suspicions. If I was wrong, we’d lose a lot of work time and I’d be getting everybody worried for nothing. For all I knew we still had to finish cleaning in addition to dealing with whatever the Brothers were plotting.

“I’ll go with you,” Nate said instantly.

“No,” I said. “That’s not a good idea. We can’t ALL go. We need to have people cleaning up. If this doesn’t get done, there’ll be hell to pay. Let me do it. Don’t you know I’m half cat? I can see in the dark.”

“If you’re looking for someone who’s going to skip out and let someone else do his work for him, Mason, there’s your man,” Ray said, tying off a garbage bag and putting it in the corner.

“You’re damned right!” I said with a courtly bow and flourish. For a meathead, Ray was (occasionally) right on the mark about certain things. As much as I liked these guys, picking up discarded beer bottles in the dark with them was not on my to-do list for the evening. “Now I’ll let you three get to the grunt work while I go retrieve our errant cowboy.” The other three groaned, but saw no better alternative, so they got back to work as I flitted out the door into the yard.

Cleanup detail my lily-white ass! Not tonight, fellas. There was a bigger mission that needed doing. As soon as I got out onto the porch I ducked low and crept towards the garage. I had taken a good look around Saturday morning to survey the damage and all that shit was gone already. This whole evening is a set-up. And if I know these guys like I think I do, they’ve already isolated and acquired Cody. Good plan to remove him first. It’s what I would have done. The question is: where have they taken him?

The garage was dark and quiet when I arrived and I was about to go in, when a sudden idea hit me. “They’re still in there,” I thought. They’re waiting for some dumb sap to check up on Cody so they can nab him, too. Not gonna happen, boys. Silently, I bounded for a nearby tree and scurried up. I broke off a small branch and tossed it at the door, making sure it made a noticeable scratching sound. Then I focused all my attention at the window in the garage door.

Sure enough, there was movement in the half-light. I couldn’t make out how many were in there, or who it was, but at least two someones were definitely inside. After a few moments the movement died down. They definitely got him. OK, step 1 confirmed. Step 2 is to find out where he is. With my ninja skills, I climbed down and crept along the side yard towards the back. I made sure to stay out of sight of any windows, in case more were in the house somewhere. Don’t want to get spotted so early in the recon.

They would have to be stashing him in a secure location. Somewhere that we wouldn’t go to as part of the cleanup project. And the only place in the house I know of that fits the bill is that basement mancave we were in Friday night. Lockable doors. Access to both the house and the yard. Perfect bunker for storing prisoners. And the outside entrance should be…

Just then I heard two sets of footsteps nearby. With a start, I dashed behind a garbage can a split second before Hoss and Brett emerged from the shed in the backyard. Both were dressed in commando-style blacks. They wore ski masks and gloves, but the silhouettes left no doubt as to their identities. Brett had several pairs of police-grade zipties hanging from his duty belt and Hoss had a bale of climbing rope, along with the telltale indentation of handcuffs in his pockets. Bringing out the heavy artillery. They’re hunting Ray. It has to be. They’d need gear like that to hold him. He would be my second target, as well. Hardware like that would be wasted on the rest of us.

“I thought for sure they’d go to the shed,” Brett said in hushed tones. “We only left them three trash bags in the house, so they should need to get more soon. And the only other place they’d be is in there with the lawn tools. They must really be slacking off in there.”

“Well, we could watch on camera if one of them turned the lights on,” Hoss said. “There’s no reason for Shane and Danny to be in the garage anymore. If they’re going in now, they’re going to go in at least pairs. And we can only nab them when they’re alone. Shane and Danny both know the rules.”

Only when alone, eh? Good to know. I’ll have to pass that on when I report back. I held my breath as they came closer to my position. The Seniors had just passed my hiding spot and were heading to the front yard. And their conversation confirmed the garage was a trap. Damn, I’m good. Being pinned down behind the garbage, I allowed myself the time for self-congratulations as the black-clad pair disappeared into the side door of the house. Then I counted to ten and then made my way into the back.

Bingo! The door to the basement. I’m sure as hell not going in – that would be suicide. The whole house is probably down there. And it’s probably locked anyway. Secret code knock and all that spy shit. But I should still do a little recon. Just to be 100% about this. I dropped prone and crawled on my belly to the window. It was sunken into the ground, so he I was putting myself in a very vulnerable position by doing this, but there was no other way to see inside. Time to trust the Fates.

Sprawling down, I could easily see into the window. There he was. I could clearly see Cody tied to a chair in the center of the room, thoroughly roped and gagged. He didn’t seem too upset, all things considered. A “First Loser” sign was hanging around his neck, but he was too engrossed in watching the football game on TV to pay it much heed. But I was also right about the entire rest of the house being down there, too. All except the Seniors, that is. A few were looking at a big board on the wall, but I couldn’t see what was on it from this angle. But I had seen enough. This was sufficient to report back to the others with. Tell them that the cleanup is a sham and that the Seniors were hunting us, one by one. Once I filled everyone else in, we’d formulate some kind of plan for a counter-offensive. Bet no one would be expecting that.

“Well, looky here.”

I froze as I heard the oily voice of Scott from right behind me. Sloppy! I was so engrossed in spying that I didn’t keep an eye on my surroundings. Rookie mistake.

“Looks like a pledge with big eyes and an even bigger mouth broke off from the herd,” Scott said. “I can’t let you get back to the others. That would spoil all the fun. You’re caught, brah. Just come along quietly. It’ll be easier that way.”

No f’ing way am I just going to roll over and give up! Especially not to Scott. The lowest-ranked Senior. The one nobody took seriously. If someone’s taking me down it should be Brett or Hoss. Someone with some skills. To get caught by the group clown would be humiliating. But I shouldn’t worry. This would be easy. He’s probably stoned out of his mind right now. Slowed reaction time. Dim awareness. I can evade him, no sweat. I spread my arms out in mock surrender, trying to lure him closer. All the time grabbing a handful of mud in one hand.

“I figured out what’s going on here,” I said, stalling for time. “And I can help. I’m guessing there’s prizes for the Senior who snags the most pledges? Let’s team up. I’ll lure them out alone so you can capture them. C’mon, man, it’ll be easy. A perfect partnership.”

Scott paused to think about it. “Well, as I see it, there are two possibilities here. Either you’re the type who’d sell out his bros for his own benefit, in which case we have no use for someone like you in TUG, or you’re trying to…”

“BINGO!” I said, hurling the mud in Scott’s direction. Based on his voice, I had a pretty good idea of where he was standing. Hopefully I hit his face and would blind him enough to make a quick getaway. But, unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way. My aim was true, but Scott had anticipated that little trick and sidestepped. And in the exact direction that I sprang up and ran towards in my attempt to escape. I was actually pretty impressed. I never would have suspected he was that quick on his feet and that perceptive. Already off-balance after springing up from a full sprawl, I zigged when I should have zagged and collided right into Scott’s chest. He was the smallest of the Seniors, by a good measure, but I was a buck-forty soaking wet. It was no contest. Before I could react, Scott had pulled me back down to the ground face-first and was sitting on top of me, trying to wrestle my hands behind my back.

From where I was laying, frantically trying to keep my hands out of Scott’s grip, I could see that the commotion we were causing had been heard in the basement. Several guys whirled to face the window and got a partial view of what was going on. A few ran to the door leading out to the yard. Peachy. Now he’ll have reinforcements. And I was right, at least partially. Three guys emerged from the stairs, but they stood apart, not interfering. I guess this was a “Seniors only” party. If I could get out of this mess, that would be useful information. I was too occupied to see exactly who was watching from the doorway, only their shoes. But they were big shoes. Looks like the bruisers had come out. Probably Omar, Brandon, and Trey. They were the three biggest. But I had far more important things to worry about than that right now. Scott was beginning to tire me out and that wasn’t good.

I was riding adrenaline, but I was built for short bursts of activity, not a prolonged struggle. And I was getting worn out. Eventually I flailed my arm in the wrong direction and I felt Scott catch it up and slip the looped end of a rope around it. With the advantage of leverage, he yanked it up and back. My arm felt like it was going to get wrenched out of its socket. Based on what had happened to Mason, I knew these guys seemed to have a bit of a problem controlling themselves when they got het up, so I decided to call it a loss and gave up before I got accidentally hurt. I didn’t have any other choice, really. A significant injury would lead to a hazing investigation, and I didn’t want that to happen. It never turns out well for anyone involved. I mean, technically, that IS what was going on, but it’s not the scary shit you see on news reports. Just a little harmless fun. So, even though every fiber of my being screamed out against the idea, I just laid back and let it happen. Well, at least it would get me out of cleaning detail for the evening.

The rope flew fast and furious. Based on the speed it was being applied with, I thought that it would be shoddy knotwork. But I was sorely mistaken. It was almost professional in its thoroughness. Like Scott led a double life as a mafia kidnapper or something. I heard him say “Let’s see how you like Wade’s patented knots. Designed to keep nuisances like you in line.” I had no idea who Wade was, but he sounded like a guy you didn’t want to cross, especially if he was the type to “design” bondage knots. But I had little time to think about that as the final bite came all too quickly and my hands were imprisoned behind me in a cage of sturdy clothesline. I held out some hope for a daring escape – hoping to take advantage when Scott would finally get off my back, but then I heard the unfastening of a belt clip and felt my hands being slid into leather mitts. Now I was screwed! The thick material kept my fingers well-contained and I would be completely unable to use them. No chance to explore the ropes for loose knots that I could use later. I was in quite the proverbial pickle here.

But I had one last trick left. Scott had been quiet during our scuffle and the bystanders weren’t making a sound, either. That meant that the other pledges were probably not far off. I had to at least try to warn them. I craned my head up and bellowed “Ray! Nate! It’s a trap! The Seniors are…” but I never finished. I nearly choked as a ball of fabric was plunged into my open mouth. It smelled like the bottom of a gymbag and was absolutely soaked with salty sweat. My eyes watered and I was actually knocked for a loop from the smell.

“Uh uh, you little rat!” Scott said, clamping his hand over my stuffed mouth with lightning speed. “No warnings for you! Looks like it’s game over, man!” And as soon as he produced the second noxious bandana and tightly cleaved my mouth with it, I knew he was right. It was over. Scott stood up and put his foot on the small of my back like I was a hunting trophy. I looked over my shoulder and saw him doing Hulk Hogan poses as the three bystanders came over to congratulate him. They said something about “high odds to win” and “mega points,” but that didn’t make any sense to me at that moment. A split second later I was hoisted to my feet and marched over to the open cellar door. Down we went.

Takeshi was already updating the scoreboard as a few Sophomores dragged a chair over next to Cody. I rolled my eyes and walked over without being told. It wasn’t a big mystery what the chair was for, anyway. Scott seemed pleased by that. He guided my hands behind the chair and sat me down gently. Such a sweetheart. Then came the rest of my ropes. I’m guessing it was more of this Wade dude’s techniques, but Scott didn’t advertise like he did outside so I couldn’t be sure. But whatever it was, it was thorough and tight. A little tightening here, a little adjustment there, and a few pats on the back for Scott from the bros and I was helplessly trapped in the chair. Cody looked over at me with a slightly disappointed look in his eyes. I thought he was bummed from being caught first, but he later told me that after he knew what was going on, he thought I would be the one to figure it out and mount a rescue attempt. I mean, he WAS right, and that WAS what I was trying to do, but things don’t always work according to plan, I guess.

So that’s where I find myself now. Seated in the middle of the Circle of Dudebros watching NFL and hoping against hope that Nate would realize what was happening. With nothing else to do, I looked over at the scoreboard. Brandon was in the lead big time. Two perfect picks. He was almost a shoe-in to win. Scott was leading the Seniors for a solo capture of a high-score target (me). Brett and Hoss had big zeroes next to their names. Knowing both of them, that wouldn’t sit well with either. Neither would be happy with last place. They’d be desperate to bag someone. Anyone. My only hope is that they’d give themselves away before they could snag their prey. If they were smart, they’d go for Nate next. He’s the most likely to catch on that something wasn’t kosher (pardon the pun). Taking him out would leave the others in the figurative dark, in addition to the literal. But it’s all academic now. At least for me. Nate was our only hope.

“Come on, bro,” I thought, looking at the door that led up into the house. “It’s all in your hands now.”

Coming Soon: Brotherly Bonding part 7 – Pledge Roundup 2

[Volobond]

Wrlcome back, my friend - as ever, it's a delight to see a master at work. A POV change and a thrilling chapter of misdirection and being hunted down. I gotta learn these patented knots - or are they a secret just for Wade and the TUG boys?

I hope things continue to go well for you and you've seen the last of being under the weather!

[Guardianbound]

Get well soon! This caught me by surprise. It seems like two most difficult pledges have already been caught. Maybe you'll surprise me again by having the rest survive for longer by sticking together. Nonetheless, love the way you wrote this chapter, the POV change was great.

[Bradstick]

Good hear you are feeling better! This last chapter was amazing, the POV change was unexpected and I was not expecting Leo to be next. I would thought he would be in the final two. Could thing I didn’t place any bets or I would be losing as well.

Take all the time you need for the next chapter and focus on feeling better. I also wish you luck with your house, those homeowner issues can be quite annoying at times

[KidnappedCowboy]

Best Wishes on your new home, [mention]wataru14[/mention]!

And it seems you're the one who brought the Welcome Wagon to us...two hot guys bound and gagged in the middle of a room full of Dude Bros!

I like the narration and the flashback of sorts!

[gag1195]

Congrats, [mention]wataru14[/mention]! I don't envy you having to deal with HOA, but fingers crossed you don't have any issues with them!

As for this update, it was amazing! Leo is for sure my favorite pledge, and this chapter further proved that! I love how confident and cocksure he is, even in defeat. It's also nice seeing him taken down a peg; proves that he still has plenty to learn! Also a nice boost to Scott's image! Can't wait to see what happens to the others, though I am hopeful that it does indeed involve a rescue mission... even if it ultimately fails!

[socjuc]

[mention]wataru14[/mention] Welcome back, and hope you continue feeling better! Missed the tale installments...

Nice flashback, and depiction of the capture....Too bad it was to a humiliating Scott Now will Nate save the day?

Looking forward to what comes next!

[Wedgieboy69]

another captivating chapter. worth the torturously long wait. I feel like Ray has to be next. if nate goes next, you will never pry mason from rays side to get them alone

[TiedupNick]

I love the flashback, and of course your writing is impeccable!

[wataru14]

Brotherly Bonding part 7 – Pledge Roundup 2

Leo was wrong about one thing. It wasn’t Nate who figured out something was going on. It was Ray.

Nate had just finished tying off the full garbage bag and reached into the box for another, only to find it empty. “Are you kidding me?” he said, exasperation heavy in his voice. “They really only left us with three trash bags in the box for the whole house? Are they serious?”

“Settle down,” Mason said. “There’s probably some more in the kitchen under the sink. That’s where everyone keeps them. Let me check.” Ray held out his phone light to guide Mason towards the nearby hall leading to the kitchen. In the half-light, Mason could barely see an inch in front of him. He was so disoriented there was no way he could possibly notice the sound of hushed breathing coming from just inside the pantry. When he turned the corner and groped his way through the dark towards the sink, he didn’t see the knob on the pantry door turning ever so slowly as he passed by…

“Did you find them yet?” Nate said, popping his phone light around the corner. The doorknob immediately ceased moving.

“Just about to look,” Mason said. “I can’t see a thing in here.” With Nate’s light, there was just enough illumination to find the cabinet door. “And…” Mason said, fishing around inside the darkened cabinet, “we have two more empty boxes. Because of course we do. Big joke.”

“Shit,” Nate said. “Well, we need to make this work somehow. Let’s get back to Ray and figure out our next step.” The unseen figure in the pantry kept perfectly still as the two Freshmen passed by him a second time and returned to the living room. He cursed under his breath in frustration at Nate’s untimely arrival. Had Mason been left alone, he would have been easily snatched and dragged into the pantry to be bound and secured. Restrained and silenced before anyone came looking for him. But rules are rules, and pledges could only be taken when alone. The unseen assailant would have to wait for another opportunity.

When Nate and Mason returned to the living room, Ray had a sour expression on his face. “Guys,” he said. “Something’s going on here. Something shady. Look.” He shined his phone light at the display case in the living room.

“Yeah, we’ve seen it,” Mason said dismissively. “They’re all over the house.” Nate didn’t respond. He just awkwardly fidgeted, thinking back to Friday night and the mess with Trey. The thuggish Sophomore was still confined in the punishment chastity cage and would be for several more days. It was his own fault for jumping to conclusions, Nate told himself, but he still felt bad for the guy.

“I know that, Einstein,” Ray said. “What I mean is: look, it’s almost empty. Someone took out most of the gear. And they wouldn’t do that without a reason.” He passed his light back and forth across the glass front of the case, revealing a distinct lack of supplies. There were several empty hooks and boxes inside. “Somebody cleaned it out before we got here. And why would they do that?”

The realization hit Nate like a fist to the gut. Cody and Leo’s extended absences, the oddly deserted house, the nonfunctional lighting… “They’re, they’re…” he stammered.

“Hunting us,” Ray said with a nod. “It has to be. They’re waiting until someone breaks off from the herd and then they nab them. And they already got Cody and Leo. That’s the only explanation for why they’ve been gone so long.”

“Shit,” Mason said, the ramifications running through his mind rapid-fire. “OK, we can work with this. We know, but they don’t know we know. We can take advantage of that. First thing, though, is we never separate. We always stay together.”

“Yes,” Nate said, synching up to Ray’s suspicion and running with it. “If Ray is right, and I’m positive he is, I’m sure they can only strike if we’re alone. Otherwise they would have rushed us in the dark by now.”

“Yeah, but…” Ray said, “we still need to finish in here. Knowing them that HAS to be part of the game. And we only have one room down. We still have the kitchen, rec room, and yard to do. And we have no bags.”

“My dad always keeps extra garbage bags in the shed for lawn clippings,” Nate said. “I’m sure they do the same thing here. We’ll have to go out there and get them.”

“Right!” Mason said. “Together.”

“Hold up a minute,” Ray said. “I have an idea.”

---

Brett waited until the light from Nate’s phone completely melted away before creeping out of the pantry. He and Hoss had parted ways after they checked the shed and he had decided to lie in wait in the kitchen for one of them to go for the bags. Hoss was too large to hide effectively so he had doubled back around to the front yard. Brett cursed under his breath. He would have easily nabbed Mason if Nate hadn’t popped in at the exact wrong moment. Once there were two in the room, that was it. Mission aborted. He needed a capture, and quickly. If he ended the evening with a 0 score, Danny would never let him hear the end of it. And it was even worse that Scott was in the lead. “Leo just fell into his lap,” Brett thought. “Lucky bastard.”

When he was sure that no one was coming into the kitchen, Brett silently made his way to the outside door. This room was a dead end now. Shane and Danny were still holding out hope for the garage and he had no idea where Scott was. So the odds of him getting a solo catch when someone came for the lawn bags were pretty good. He secretly hoped it was Ray. Of the three remaining, he was the highest point prize. He’d be right behind Scott if he could bag Ray by himself. Then he and Hoss could get one of the others easily and Brett would have enough points to win. As long as Scott didn’t get the other one. But Brett would worry about that later.

He made it to the shed unobserved and slipped inside, taking a place behind the lawnmower and crouching down low. Anyone coming into the shed wouldn’t be able to see him until it was too late. He checked his gear. Ropes, cable ties, handcuffs, socks pre-knotted into a cleave gag. All ready to go and easily reachable with one hand. He was ready. Nothing to do now but wait.

But he didn’t have to wait long. In less than 10 minutes, Brett could hear the sound of approaching footsteps. One set. Jackpot! Brett coiled back in preparation as the door of the shed began to slowly rumble and slide away. The sun had fully set, but there was enough moonlight for Brett could see the telltale blonde hair of Ray over the top of the yard equipment. “Excellent,” he thought. “Things are working out just like I hoped. Just need to be careful and choose my moment…” With baited breath, Brett waited until Ray turned around to check the shelves for garbage bags. He grabbed a set of cable ties and pounced.

---

The battle was quick and decisive. Not to say both combatants weren’t strong and motivated, but the element of surprise was everything. A grab in the dark, some jostling for position, and finally a tight sleeper hold. There was some desperate flailing after that, and some yard tools dislodged and knocked from shelves in the fracas, but the outcome was already decided when the grapple was locked. Soon the victor released his grip as his unconscious prey slumped to the floor. “Gotcha, fucker!” the triumphant party exclaimed in hushed tones. “Now let’s get you secured and downstairs.”

---

There was no camera in the shed, so the assembled brothers had no video feed after Ray stepped over the threshhold. All 10 (as well as Leo and Cody), watched excitedly, tingling with anticipation as to who would walk out of there and who would be carried out. After what seemed like an eternity, someone slowly emerged. The first thing anyone saw was a pair of heavy black combat boots. The camo-and-black-clad form of Brett emerged, his ski mask slightly askew, with the unconscious form of Ray slung over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. A cheer erupted from the crowd as Bryan and Takeshi updated the scores on the board.

And from the looks of it, Brett had taken no chances with Ray. The burly Freshman was secured hand and foot with military-grade cable ties. His hands were locked behind his back with the industrial-strength plastic cuffs, the box double locked and the loops mercilessly tightened around the victim’s wrists. His ankles were done up in the same manner, leaving barely two inches between his ankles. If the blonde wrestler was conscious, he wouldn’t have been able to do more than hop impotently in his restraints. A rope harness had been woven around Ray’s waist and nether regions, which the cable ties had been fastened tightly to. This assured that the limber wrestler would not be able to slip his hands under his butt and around to the front. He was flexible enough to do that, even with his bulkier frame, and everyone knew it. He was trapped like a perp going into solitary. The entirety of Ray’s lower face was cocooned in gorilla tape, with a thick and coarse shop rag stuffed deeply into his mouth. No one could see this, however, as Ray’s head was encased in a thick canvas sack, cinched closed around his neck with rope. It let it no light, rendering the defeated jock blind and totally helpless.

Carrying his prize, Brett strutted across the lawn to the cellar door. He was about to tap the secret knock with his foot, but the door opened for him before he could signal.

“You got him?” Bryan exclaimed, peering out from the stairs.

“Yup,” Brett said. His voice was gravelly and sore. “Tough sonnafabitch. He got me in a chokehold but I reversed it and knocked him out. I’m going to be sounding like Tom Waits for a few days.”

Bryan laughed. “What’s with the bag?” he asked. “He won’t be able to watch TV like that once he comes to.”

“This one doesn’t get to watch,” Brett said, slipping past Bryan and heading down the stairs. A chorus of cheers greeted him as he carried Ray over to the chair that was slid in place to Leo’s left. “Fucker tried to bite me! Can’t say I blame him, but he has to pay for that little stunt. The bag stays on until the hunt is over. And I want him done up extra secure. You have my permission to go all out on this one.” Brett flashed his Presidential Ring for emphasis. Bryan looked like he was going to protest, but thought better of it. The other Brothers, however, licked their lips in anticipation, eager to test out their roping skills. And the President’s sanction to not hold back was even better.

“OK, chief,” Bryan grudgingly said. “If that’s what you want.” Brett stood back and watched, gloating, as Sophomores descended on the unconscious Ray from all sides and began tethering him to the chair mercilessly. Ropes flew from all directions, and within seconds Ray was secured in an escape-proof web of cords. Even though he was restrained thoroughly when he was brought it, Ray was not one to be underestimated, so no quarter was given lashing him to the chair. Almost every part of him was encircled with the coarse white rope, leaving only scant bits exposed here and there. Leo mused to himself that they had gone rougher on Ray than they did with him. Brett must be really mad, he thought.

A look of defeat took over Cody’s face. If they got Ray, that meant only Nate and Mason were left. On the plus side, they would be doubly sure to never separate. They must have an idea of what’s going on by now, he thought. But on the minus side, neither would be able to put up much of a fight if they were isolated and attacked. Things looked pretty grim from Cody’s perspective. He grunted through his gag in anger and frustration. Pablo reached over and ruffled his hair.

“What’s the matter, cowboy?” he teased. “You upset that Brett got your big guns? Don’t worry. With him out of the way your other buddies will be joining you real soon.” Cody just grunted in response and turned away.

Leo, on the other hand, was watching this scene with a great deal of interest. His Spider-Sense was tingling. Something wasn’t right. He couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was (and not just because of the mitts on his hands), but there was definitely some sort of con being played here. No way he’d miss something like that! So Leo kept quiet, studying the scene and observing.

Brett grabbed a beer and took a quick chug through the mouth slit of his ski mask. He hadn’t taken it off when he brought his prisoner into the basement, but no one seemed to notice. He looked up and checked the scoreboard, nodding as he was moved into second place behind Scott. “Nate and Mason are worth the same points,” Takeshi said. “So if you can get one and keep Scott from getting the other, you’ll win, boss man. But if he gets one of them, even with help, the prize is his. You’ve got your work cut out for you.”

“But it’s still anyone’s game,” Brandon said. “If Danny and Shane can snag them both, then they’ll be in the lead. Same with Hoss.”

“True,” Takeshi said. “Either way, it looks like the outcome is still undecided.”

“Then I’d better get going,” Brett croaked. “I have a plan and I should be getting to it.” He put down the empty bottle and headed towards the stairs.

“Yo, boss man,” Jaquan said, a hint of suspicion in his voice. “Hold up a second.”

Brett stopped dead. “Yeah, J? What is it?” Jaquan walked up to Brett and gave him an appraising look from head to toe. He seemed to be thinking very hard about something.

“Nothing,” Jaquan finally said. “I had a weird thought, but never mind. Just nab them quick. I have a date tonight after the hunt is over and my woman will skin me alive if I’m late again.”

Brett chuckled. “No worries, my man,” he said. “You’ll be out on the town before you know it.” And with that Brett disappeared up the stairs and into the yard.

---

“Do you think it worked?” Nate asked. “Ray’s plan, I mean. I still think it was too risky to try.” Still bagless, he and Mason had collected all the garbage on the countertops and had just finished scrubbing the floor.

“It is risky,” Mason said, “but if I know Ray, it will work. Everything he does goes his way. It’s just how he is.”

Nate was about to grudgingly agree but stopped as the kitchen door to the porch opened. Both boys froze as a black-and-camo-clad figure emerged from the darkness and closed the door behind him. Both Nate and Mason were paralyzed with fear and unable to speak.

“Relax, it’s me,” Ray said. He reached up and pulled off the ski mask, revealing his identity to his two classmates. Seeing Ray’s face, both Nate and Mason let out a sigh of relief.

“So it worked?” Mason asked hurriedly. “You got him?”

“Yeah,” Ray said, putting a box of garbage bags on the counter. “He jumped me in the dark, but I was expecting that. I reversed it on him and sleepered his ass out cold. Fucker forgot I’m state singles champ! He should be out for a while. Then I switched our clothes and zipcuffed him up. Bagged his head so no one would notice he wasn’t me. All according to plan. Then I brought him downstairs. Even snagged that ring of his for extra cred.”

“Did you see Cody and Leo?” Nate asked.

“Yeah,” Ray said. “They’re both down there. And tied up really well. Especially Leo. And the entire Sophomore and Junior classes are guarding them.”

“So no chance for a rescue, then?” Mason said glumly. “But all is not lost. If we can smuggle down a razor blade, they can cut themselves free, right? Then they can escape?”

“Possible,” Ray said. “But they’re being watched on all sides. Leo’s hands are mitted, too. So it would have to be given to Cody. And we’d need a distraction for him to be able to work. There’s another problem, too.”

“What?” Nate asked.

“Based on the ‘points’ we were all assigned, I can’t be the one to bring anyone else in,” Ray said. “If I do, I pretty much win and the game is over.”

“So what you’re saying is if we’re going to smuggle something in,” Nate said, “one of us has to get caught for real.”

“Yes,” Ray said. “And not by Scott, either. He’s in the same position as Brett. The safest bet is Hoss. He’s in last place, so it won’t unbalance the scores. That will give us more time to get everyone out.”

“But the danger is that once one of us is taken, the other one will be completely alone,” Mason said. “And I’m guessing all bets are off at that point. It will be a free-for-all to capture them and they’ll have no support.”

“They’ll have me,” Ray said, a little offended. “But you’re right. I can only do so much or I’ll give it away. And I think Jaquan suspects something already.”

“Then we have to work fast,” Nate said. He fished into the junk drawer and removed four razor blades. He kept two and gave the others to Mason. “You’ve got to hide these on you. Somewhere they won’t find, but also somewhere where you can reach if your hands are tied.”

“And since we don’t know how we’ll be tied or with what,” Mason said “there’s no guarantee it will work. If they use chains or cuffs, it’s over.”

“They won’t,” Ray said. “Hate to say it, but you two aren’t considered big threats. The chains were for me, and possibly Leo. With us out of the game already, they won’t think they’ll need to use the heavy gear. We can use that to our advantage.” Nate understood what Ray was saying, but Mason seemed very hurt by the TUG brothers’ low estimation of his skills.

“Exactly,” Nate said. He picked up on Mason’s lowering mood and put his arm around his friend’s shoulders in support. “Underestimating us will be what brings them all down. After tonight, they’ll be sure to never do that again.”

Mason perked up a little at Nate’s encouragement. “Right!” he said. “So the big question now is: who offers themselves up and who goes on evasion detail?”

Coming Soon: Interlude - Iced Over

[Volobond]

HAHA! I knew it! Ray almost had me there with the clothes switcheroo and the ring, but I knew something was off! Good for the freshmen for shaking things up, and with Brett out of commission, I think they have a real chance at turning the tables! But really, we'll just have to wait and see!

Absolutely AMAZING chapter with a perfectly-executed twist!